- TD Green Streets fosters innovation in urban forestry through $15,000 grants -

TORONTO, Oct. 9, 2012 /CNW/ - Tree Canada and TD Friends of the Environment Foundation (TD FEF) are now accepting applications for the 2013 TD Green Streets grants. Municipalities, Aboriginal communities and Business Improvement Associations (BIA's) in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver are encouraged to apply for grants of up to $15,000 to help green their local communities through tree planting, maintenance and educational activities, inventory and innovative approaches to municipal forestry. The application deadline is December 7, 2012.

"At TD FEF, we are thrilled to join with Tree Canada to continue our support of innovative urban forestry initiatives," says Mary Desjardins, Executive Director, TD Friends of the Environment Foundation. "We're proud to have helped nurture more than 60 initiatives since we became the title sponsor of TD Green Streets, and we look forward to hearing about more exciting projects across Canada's urban landscape through this year's applicants."

TD Green Streets applications are reviewed by regional teams comprised of representatives from Tree Canada, TD FEF, and urban forest practitioners. They are evaluated on the basis of creativity, community involvement and partnerships within the community.

"Most importantly, the projects must have relevance and be transferable to other communities so that we can share the learning and green even more communities to enhance daily life in urban areas," said Tree Canada President Mike Rosen.

In 2012, 75 communities from across Canada applied to the program and 21 received TD Green Streets grants, including: the town of Goderich, where Ontario's most powerful tornado in years destroyed many of the beloved trees; the planting of tree buffers in open spaces and along highways to reduce soil erosion in Swift Current, Saskatchewan; and, a Vancouver BIA/neighbourhood initiative to plant more than 200 communal fruit trees contributing to the city's greening and supporting food security.

The 2013 grant recipients will be announced in March 2013. Communities who have received TD Green Streets funding in the past are welcome to re-apply.

About TD Green Streets:
TD Green Streets is a national program that supports innovative practices in municipal forestry. Through this unique program, communities across Canada are eligible to receive matching grants of up to $15,000 to support local forestry projects. TD Green Streets is open to Canadian municipalities, Aboriginal communities and Business Improvement Associations (BIAs) in Montréal, Vancouver and Toronto. For more information about TD Green Streets and how to apply for funding visit tdfef.com or www.tdgreenstreets.ca.

About Tree Canada:
Tree Canada is a not-for-profit charitable organization that works with sponsors, donors and communities to plant and care for rural and urban trees, promotes urban forests in Canada and facilitates carbon offset projects with trees. To date, more than 78 million trees have been planted, more than 520 schoolyards have been greened, and Tree Canada has organized 9 national urban forest conferences. More information about Tree Canada is available at www.treecanada.ca.

About TD Friends of the Environment Foundation:
Since 1990, TD FEF has provided more than $60 million in funding to more than 20,000 environmental projects across Canada. In 2011, TD FEF provided more than $3.6 million in support of 1,058 projects. Thousands of donors give to TD FEF on a monthly basis and TD Bank Group contributes in excess of $1 million annually. TD also covers the management costs of running TD FEF, which guarantees 100 per cent of every dollar donated goes directly to funding environmental projects and programs. For more information on how to donate, visit www.tdfef.com.

SOURCE: TD Friends of the Environment Foundation